The Justice Center

The LCAC and the building it occupies in downtown New Orleans called “The Justice Center” have functioned as an incubator for progressive criminal justice organizations over the years.

In 2001, the Capital Appeals Project (CAP) was formed from existing LCAC staff. CAP represents capital clients on direct appeal and in post-conviction. While at The Justice Center, CAP helped to create the Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI), an organization dedicated to the civil and human rights of our incarcerated clients. CAP and PJI remained at the Justice Center until 2018.

A Fighting Chance – an organization of capital mitigators later known as NOLA Investigates – was started in 2002 by LCAC mitigation specialists and remained at The Justice Center until 2008.

The Innocence Project - New Orleans (IPNO) began at The Justice Center over fifteen years ago and moved into its own location in 2008. While at the Justice Center, IPNO helped to form Resurrection After Exoneration, which also began its work in the building.

Reprieve US began at The Justice Center and is the sister office to Reprieve UK and the Capital Punishment Justice Project (formerly Reprieve Australia). Reprieve US provides volunteers to non-profit organizations representing death penalty cases in the United States and remained at The Justice Center until 2013.

The LCAC’s “client welfare project” was developed by LCAC staff to generate donations and resources to respond to the non-legal needs of our pre-trial and sentenced clients and their families. This function, now called Client and Family Assistance, has since been assumed by PJI, where it continues to serve our impoverished clients and their families.